Rugby ATL re-signed Viliame Helu for the 2023 Major League Rugby season. The 26-year-old back-row/No. 8 (27 in March) is 6’4″ and 235 lbs.
Vili played 628 minutes in 11 matches, starting 8, and scored 2 tries for Rugby ATL in 2022. He toured South Africa for the Toyota Challenge with the USA Falcons, playing against The Toyota Cheetahs and the Pumas. He was then selected for the USA National Team for the 2023 Rugby World Cup Final Qualifiers against Kenya, Hong Kong, and Portugal, starting all three matches as a blindside flanker. He played 80 minutes in the first two matches and 47 in the last against Portugal.
Vili played 658 minutes in 16 matches, starting 7, and scored one try for the Ratlers in 2021. He played 121 minutes in three matches, starting as a blindside flanker twice, during the COVID-19 truncated 2020 season. During the Fall, he played for Pathway 404. Vili also played against the Utah Warriors during the team’s 2021 preseason match.
Vili is from Alamo, California, and attended Danville High School and played for the Danville Oaks Rugby Club. He was a High School All-American in Rugby. He was also selected to Team USA for the Junior Olympic Youth Games.
Vili attended Saint Mary’s College in California and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance and Entrepreneurship. He also achieved All-American honors and toured with the All-Americans to Queensland, Australia in 2016. The team traveled to the Collegiate Rugby Championship in 2019 and he also achieved All-American honors.
Vili also played with 404 Rugby ATL.
Other Articles
DJCoil Rugby articles by Doug Coil are also available on Facebook. Other Social Media sites to follow or subscribe to include Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube for interviews.
